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"What could you not accept...?"

The level of form is one great story; one tapestry of
interconnection. Nothing at the level of form lives in isolation from the rest
of the level of form. Everything that happens affects everything else. When
something happens at the level of form there are multiple contributing factors.
There are causes and effects and effects which became causes themselves all
playing on each other. The attitudes, behaviors, choices, and energy of the
self with which you identify all play into this one grand story. And everything
else happening at the level of form plays into the self’s seemingly-singular
little story within the grand story.

All of this happens apart from Truth (God). It is the
opposite of Truth, so it is without meaning because Truth cannot have an
opposite. Therefore it is an “illusion” or “dream”. Its interconnectedness is not
the Oneness of Truth, Which is not made up of discrete parts joining, but is
the same throughout.

When you (mind) change, the self’s attitudes, behavior,
choices, and energy change, thereby affecting the self’s relationship to the
rest of the universe of form. In response, the universe of form changes in
relationship to the self. These changes of mind can be within the self’s
thought system (personal thought system/ego). These would be changes of mind in
the context of the self-as-reality. Or they can be caused by an awareness of
Truth. These changes would be the process of self (form)-identification falling
away.

So Truth never enters into form directly to change it. Your
awareness of Truth indirectly has an effect on form. And this is, again, always
without meaning in itself. Any meaning you see in it comes from you. And you
only have two choices of perspective: the ego/personal thought system or the
Holy Spirit, Which comes from your awareness of Truth.

“What could you not
accept, if you but knew that everything that happens, all events, past, present
and to come, are gently planned by One Whose only purpose is your good?”
(W-135.18)

So this quote does not mean that the Holy Spirit goes out
into the world and makes things happen “for your good”. The Holy Spirit’s
“plan” is an interpretation. The Holy
Spirit lovingly interprets what happens in the universe of form for the peace of
your mind. The personal thought system in your mind may not like what happens
in the universe of form. It may judge things as “wrong” or “bad”. But the Holy
Spirit in your mind sees everything as a lesson. It will always interpret what
happens in a way that leads to your lasting peace and happiness. And its
interpretation will always make sense to you where you are right now.

>>>>>

Learn about the books The ACIM Mentor Articles, The Plain Language A Course in Miracles, 4 Habits for Inner Peace, and Releasing Guilt for Inner Peace at www.acimmentor.com.

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Comments

oh, something is really niggling away in my mind around this. first id like to say that i do see the liberating beauty of the clarification you are expressing here, this post brought back the joy of the one song/story experience i had and also explains why i felt that joy, trust and peace at the time, without the circumstances i was experiencing and afraid of actually changing at all.

but i have this niggle still. um. so.. here goes!

is every occurrence in the dream part of a seeming interconnected flawless plan/story of awakening in the world, because of the nature of reality, even though holy spirit doesnt actually play a part in occurrences in the world!? i mean.. is there a kind of.. crossover here?? of the timeless plan of holy spirits loving and peaceful interpretation of not truth as not true, and truth as true. into the way the worlds happenings seem to play out?

the following passage from lesson 42 came to mind,

'This means that you can receive it any time and anywhere, wherever you are, and in whatever circumstance you find yourself. Your passage through time and space is not at random. You cannot but be in the right place at the right time. Such is the strength of God. Such are His gifts.'

and i wonder about the 'not at random' part, how that ties in with things in the world happening "for our good".. not as we want, as in making our egos happy, but "for our good" as in moving toward our eventually choosing truth?

Hannah, it's the same thing: Things are not at random in the universe of form. They are the result of cause and effect. And the HS can weave for you a cohesive "story" about it through its interpretations of what occurs at the level of form. The strength of God and God's gift in that lesson is God's Vision. This can be received anytime and anywhere because it is not contingent upon circumstances in the world but on your willingness. So of course you cannot but be in the right place at the right time - because you are always in God.

There is no crossover between Truth and the universe of form. In fact, sorting not-Truth from Truth is necessary to undo guilt. As long as any of not-Truth seems true to you, you will believe in guilt. This is why for those who prefer to spiritualize form rather than to transcend it there will always be a vestige of guilt. The joy and freedom of true forgiveness is in the recognition that there is no relationship between the experience of form and Truth.

ok, thank you, that is clear! i think.. ;) while there is no crossover between truth and not truth, as the part of not-truth that is aware that this seeming separation from truth isnt actually occurring, HS can communicate a reflection of love in the cause and effect within the dream.. is that right?

and there being no relationship between the experience of form and truth, means that you cannot use (for example) the wellness or illness of bodies to gauge a seemingly individual minds awareness of truth. but you could maybe gauge a minds awareness of truth by the meaning an individual tried to give to the health or ill health of a body?

my acim group facilitator teaches that the body is always reflecting the minds awareness or lack thereof of truth. so within that understanding, physical pain for example is always an indication that a person believes in guilt: the body always follows the mind. this has not been the understanding i had come to from my own study, and i had one experience of intense quite lengthy illness (near the beginning of this ill time you posted the blog 'a different approach to the body') during which i felt totally happy, connected to love, meditation time took on a deeper feeling of connection and communion, it didnt matter that my body was sick, it didnt feel like it meant anything, or had any power to take away my peace of mind. (i became aware via your blog that my attachment to others interpretation of the course could take away my peace of mind.. and i was greatful for the learning!)im no longer sure how to respond in group, as i enjoy the company and sharing but feel awkward, like i should keep my perceptions to my self, as the facilitator is teaching something different. im finally recognising that it is only ever the egos job to think it needs to fix anyone elses perceptions.. so im not sure if to just go along and stay silent, speak and annoy the teacher, or if its time to leave and just catch up with the girls socially!

ok, i just read 'a different approach to the body' again, and its clearer now, youve already answered my question ;)

"Once when I was thinking about sickness the Holy Spirit explained to me that when a lion takes down a gazelle it is not personal. The lion is only trying to survive. It’s the same with a virus, like a cancer or a ‘flu. The virus is only another organism in the world. It is not personal when it attacks a body. It’s only doing what viruses do to survive. So a virus is not “wrong” or “bad”. It’s neutral. It has no meaning in itself. It’s just part of the experience of the world. The whole experience of the world is one of guilt and fear. Illness is not a special case of this. The body does not have a neutral state of perfection. The whole of the universe of form, as the opposite of Perfect Truth, is inherently dysfunctional. This dysfunction is not wrong or bad. It is just the way that the opposite-of-Truth is."

i understood from ken wapnicks teachings that nothing is going to change the world from being what it is... an expression of the belief in, and guilt around, and desire to keep separation. but we are free to change our minds about those beliefs and desires, and thus our responses to 'the world' will change automatically.

Here is a little story. Over the past several months I have been sharing my spiritual journey with two other women, one is on a christian walk and the other, on the “new age” spiritual walk. Quite an interesting connection that has led to being shown comparisons that has evoked tremendous healing for this mind and one in particular I'll share as it happened just this morning while folding laundry.

The connection with these women have involved many discussions about our individual paths that have resulted in miracles and insights throughout however over the past few weeks, they seem to have both “fallen away.” My calls, text messages or emails have gone unanswered. My personal mind initially interprets this as total disregard, being unfairly treated feeling (oh no) and how can they use me like an on and off switch. When they want something, they turn the switch on and when they don't, they turn the switch off. So with forgiveness, the thoughts leave but then they roll back in and I forgive again and this goes on for awhile until I finally hear and recognize, oh, it is me poised at the on and off switch, the switch I use in my mind with the Holy Spirit and I get it and I let go the idea of these women or so I think.

While journaling this morning I pondered, did these women fall away because they got scared of the awareness of Truth and are “ignoring” me because of the fear in their minds and then I immediately realized there still existed an emotional charge with the thoughts of these women and then I told myself, with gentle laughter I add, enough already and after letting it go I got up to fold my laundry, and heard, “who is scared of the Truth in whose mind?”

What is it for? What is it's purpose? Separation of course. Letting go of the self identity is a hard thing to do but I remain poised at the switch. It's On.

As experience presents itself, all just happens. Events, people, planetary action, and mostly "my" reactions to all of this. There is nothing to do, because "nothing" sits by silently is always OK with being OK or not OK. I am no longer into the symbolism of ACIM (holy spirit, self, separation), but I do appreciate what is being expressed often on your blog Liz. It's actually the only think I read anymore. Thanks.

ok.. so while im still thinking that what choice i make MATTERS, that indicates that i still think form is real. and that is why there will be right and wrong involved in the thoughts around a situation, let alone why i spend time 'thinking' about 'the situation' at all! ie, the HS purpose does not involve sorting out a problem, but letting go of belief in problems! ok, return to true forgiveness of mistaken belief/choice, let go of making error real.. thanks all xx

'The joy and freedom of true forgiveness is in the recognition that there is no relationship between the experience of form and Truth.'

so a need for external circumstances of peaceful egos, is trying to bring truth to not truth.. that is ME trying to spiritualize form!! and what im seeing in the group facilitator, (her spiritualising of form) is a reflection/projection of my inner world, which i can know because it was effecting my state of mind. the form might have appeared different, but the basic content of trying to bring truth to not truth was occurring.

i just came across these passages in a couple of liz blogs which felt relevant to the topic, to relaxing and absorbing it!

'Eventually I gave more and more of the self’s life to the Holy Spirit (Teacher of Truth in my mind). It has become clear to me recently that some of what I thought was guidance from the Holy Spirit over the years was really my tuning into the flow of the universe. Where the Holy Spirit came into it was in my willingness to be rational, open, and without judgment. This opened my mind to the flow of the universe of form. So the Holy Spirit was not so much my guide as my mind-set. But even though I sought the flow, rather than to manifest what I wanted, I still lived through the self. I sought through it for happiness and peace. But when I undid guilt I let go of a need for a story – for a self. I let the self go into the flow of the universe – where it always was, anyway. It was always just a character in a story, though I selfishly thought it was there for me to live through! Now I simply watch it, without judgment. Since I don’t identify with it I am not concerned with controlling its life. It is only part of a meaningless story that has nothing to do with Truth.'

and

'Keep in mind that the ego thought system gets caught up in the details of what is or is not occurring in the unfolding story. It cannot see beyond what is right in front of it, or its own desires, so it is always in lack. But the thought system of the Holy Spirit (your awareness of God) in your mind sees the larger unfolding story. It sees the whole picture. Where the ego sees minutiae the Holy Spirit sees the larger unfolding theme. The ego sees what is not yet done in time. The Holy Spirit sees that time is over.

So you can relax and trust your unfolding awareness. You don’t have to nitpick the details of your every thought and mood and choice every moment of the day. The arc of your life has changed. The outcome is inevitable.'

I am in the midst of numerous funerals and news of elderly family members' and friends of family's deaths recently. Everybody has been 89, 92, 93, 95, and one man was one month shy of 100 years old!! Last evening, I was at a cousin's memorial/funeral service...one of my other cousins stated sadly, as we all sat there in the pews at the funeral home, "I don't recognize anyone anymore!!" I thought to myself that she was 'missing her story' with 'recognizable people' or family members...there is a belief of 'safety' in the clan or tribe...as that safety net dissolves around us, the tiny self feels like it is vulnerable. I now approach this 'story' differently and more peacefully - I am surrounded by Sameness, not loss - just because form is variable, I know for certain now that Content is and always has been the same. I am totally comfortable with acquaintances and strangers. Even when they have the "story boards" displayed with lovely old family photos stretching out through the decades - all the "happiest" moments (who knows what was really going on!) I am not devastated anymore. This is a start for me...towards the Inner Peace thing.

All these shares have been helpful to where I am right now. Thank you. All there is, is now.

Remembering there is another choice, I share a joke. I was watching some stand up comedians last night and one comedian I enjoyed said this insightful joke. It goes something like . . what was Noah thinking when he called in all animals onto the arc. I would have called in all the beavers to built a mighty damn.

i understood that phrase to mean that once we had 'got our heads around' the truth of oneness, we would see everyone as part of that one, and so we would know mighty companions in everyone from that 'point' forward. my dear friend who is also committed to a peaceful mind is sure that 'mighty companions' means that once we reach a certain point of trust, we will find there are others who are knowingly on the same path to peace around who will be there for us to grow with, consciously.

things like the message in this post, re identification with individual self falling away, makes me think im on the right track, but im not sure.

laughing! i do keep involving myself in others perspective and the purpose they assign to 'things' dont i ;)

im thinking.. 'might' is in oneness, unity. and what selves perceptions of these things mean is going to evolve with selves experience. where we see unity or joining or oneness is where we will see 'mighty companions'. as our self identity shifts, so will our perception of the meaning of this. thanks liz.

I love all these articles and comments.Please keep them coming.I've a sample of Liz's Practicing WB on my Kindle and I know when I come to the end I just have to click Buy Now! So much that I am studying with ACIM resonates with my 25 years study of Mary Baker Eddy's Science&Health textbook.On this topic,she was always saying that "God is my individuality" and "God is my Life",etc.Peace to all.

Hi george :) im finding that studying ACIM alongside the works of someone who has really applied the ideas in their life, and had experience of Oneness, and peace in 'the dream' is really illuminating. ive just started listening to the text on my ipod, reading the text again, then reading the parallel section in liz' plain language acim. i actually know that all i need to accept for peace is in '4 steps to inner peace', but studying in a variety of ways helps me to keep at it and focused!

Hello there everyone....I am new to this blog site and just wanted to say hi and that I have found all your comments very illuminating.. I am having a wonderful time with Liz's books, having been a student of The Course for nearly thirty years....very off and on, I must say...but not now! She really makes it so much clearer.... Having had a Christian upbringing, which I had largely abandoned many years ago, I found the terminology challenging from time to time...now my 'ego' seems to have transcended that somehow!! Looking forward to continuing discussions. Susie X

thank you all for your heart felt sharing. and christine, after hearing this morning of the sudden death of a close friend of 30 years, i went back and reread your words. they were -are helpful.endless Love, n

Gratitude, gratitude, gratitude!! For Liz's blog, for all of you and your wonderful and helpful comments, for all of the challenges this life offers (lately they have seemed to be in abundance)that give me the opportunity to forgive and draw closer to Truth and Peace. I can't believe the peace I have found through the Course. Had I not found the Course (or had it not found me), I would not be experiencing these challenges through the eyes of peace/Holy Spirit, but through fear/ego. Gratitude, gratitude!!

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I have been a student of A Course in Miracles since 1984, a life coach since 2000, and a mentor for students of A Course in Miracles and 4 Habits for Inner Peace since 2006. You can learn more about me and what I offer at my website, www.acimmentor.com.